The Road Ahead (Extended)
by Jennifer Collins
Summary: Their journey after he finds her.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: When I originally wrote The Road Ahead as a submission to the U.S.S. Caryl's Music Lyric Drabble/Fanart challenged, I'd intended it as a oneshot. Then I wrote a smutty second chapter. Then the idea for this story would not leave me alone. I'm keeping the songfic submission up as a oneshot, but here is a story inspired by that one. The first chapter here is that same one, only without the song lyrics. The second chapter here was re-written without the smut. From the third chapter on is the rest of their journey.

Thank you so much to everybody who has followed, favorited, commented, or reviewed. I hope you like where this story goes.

He sat on the floor in his cell with his back against the wall. The sinking feeling that had settled in the pit of his stomach had spread throughout his body, and all he felt was empty.

No one came, but then again he didn't expect them to. In all honesty, he figured if they knew better, they wouldn't.

The hours stretched on into the night agonizingly slow, as he imagined the rest of the days would without her. Without her. The notion seemed unacceptable in his mind before, he knew that now. But either way, the choice had been taken away from him.

He stood abruptly, left the room and walked down the hall to the next cell. It still smelled like her. The sheets, the pile of folded cargo pants and cardigans sitting abandoned on the chair, the book resting on the table with a forgotten bookmark.

"Dammit!" He cursed out loud, kicking the legs out from under the folding chair and watching her things fall to the floor.

A second later he was picking them up, holding her favorite sweater up to his face and breathing deeply.

He slammed his fists into the table in one last desperate attempt to vent the anger, but the anger stayed. The regret stayed, the bitterness stayed, the hollow, empty feeling in his chest stayed too. Fuck this, he thought.

He was out the door in a matter of seconds, ignoring the pleas that followed him from behind and he tugged the fence closed before he turned around to mount his bike, never once looking back.

It was dark and crisp, and the road stretched on forever in front of him, but he didn't care. He rode eight miles south, his mouth twitching up slightly as he chose which direction to go from there. He could hear the low groaning of walkers on either side of him as he rode at a leisurely pace, but he didn't care. He didn't even pay attention to how many of them there were. It just didn't matter.

He dug around in his pocket for the unopened pack of cigarettes that he'd been keeping for a special occasion.

Six miles later, he was slowing down, the dim glow from his headlight casting out over the grass. It took him almost a full minute, but he got what he needed and headed on.

It was hours before he was swinging his leg to the ground and padding across the uneven pavement. She didn't even look up as he approached with his flashlight in hand and cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

"How on earth did you find me?" She asked, her voice cutting through the quiet darkness even though it was nearly a whisper.

He grinned, pulling the cigarette out of his mouth and offering it to her. "I'm a tracker, remember?"

She shook her head. "I'm not going back."

"What a coincidence. Neither am I."

He thought he saw a spark light in her eyes then, but it was so damn dark he wasn't sure. She shuffled her feet idly.

He nodded to the vehicle parked by the curb. "That your car?"

"Yeah," she replied.

"Good. Pull it up behind my bike. We can head north. I'll show you the way."

"No."

He looked up, not sure he'd heard her correctly. "'Scuse me?"

She tugged the keys out of her pocket and headed for the driver's side. "I'm kind of done with the whole following people thing. You either get in or you ride behind."

"Well, okay then." He nodded thoughtfully, not even hesitating before he slid into the passenger's seat.


	2. Chapter 2

It wasn't even an hour later that Carol stopped driving. Just put the car in park, right there in the middle of the dirt road. It wasn't like there were any rules to follow anymore.

She sat stone faced for a moment, staring straight ahead into the nothingness. Then she slammed her hands against the dashboard and broke down crying.

"Hay," Daryl said quietly. He reached for her, putting an arm around her shaking shoulders. "C'mere."

She threw herself against him as much as she could in the close quarters, clutching at his shirt and sobbing into him. "You know?"

"I know."

That made her cry even harder.

"Sssh, sshh," he soothed, pulling her against his chest and tucking her head under his chin. He sat silently for awhile then, just letting her cry.

Long moments stretched before she straightened herself up and slid across the seat against the driver's side door, wiping the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. "Why did you come for me?"

He sat facing her with his back against the passenger's side door, looking down and fidgeting with his hands for a moment before he answered, "Ya really don't know?"

She blinked, tried to digest what he was telling her without really telling her. It was all too much, so she leaned forward and pressed her lips carefully against his. She fully expected him to pull away in confusion, but she wanted to do it, so she did.

He froze for a moment, then gripped her shoulders firmly as he began to kiss her back, running his tongue along her bottom lip.

She parted her lips and he somewhat sloppily pushed his tongue in. Nearly two years of wondering what it would be like to taste every part of his mouth took over and she pushed back, letting her fingers get tangled in his hair.

She leaned further into him as they kissed, pressing him flush against the door and he made a sound something like a little whimper. She paused, pulled back slightly. "You alright?"

"Mmm, yeah," He said with a slight smile. "Don't have much experience, but I think the tradit'nl place for this is the back seat."

She looked at him with wide eyes. "But-but the walkers…"

He shrugged. "Ain't seen any activity for miles. 'Sides, we'll hear 'em before they see us. Up to you."

She nodded vigorously, her hand already reaching behind her to undo the latch on the door.

She crawled into the back seat and was met with frantic kisses all over her face. She closed her eyes, leaning her head back.

He lowered his lips to her neck, the hairs on his chin scraping against her sensitive skin.

"Hey, that tickles," she murmured, eyes still closed.

"Good to know," he replied, sucking softly on her collar bone. He tugged her cardigan aside, slowly slipping it off her shoulders.

"Daryl…" she breathed as he continued his exploration, dipping his tongue into her pulse point and causing her to shiver slightly.

"What do you want?" He asked, rubbing his hands up and down her arms.

"You," she whispered. "It's always been you." She opened her eyes to look at him. "What do you want?"

He didn't answer, at least not with words spoken out loud. Instead he just looked back at her, eyes wide, with an expression on his face that she didn't quite recognize. She tilted his head up to kiss him again and he eagerly obliged, slipping his tongue past her lips and kissing her thoroughly.

He leaned forward as they kissed, gently lowering her onto the seat of the car until he was practically on top of her. "This alright?" He asked.

She nodded wordlessly, adjusting to welcome his warm weight and wrapping her arms around his back to pull him closer. She could feel his reaction to their making out on her hip and she shifted against him.

He groaned softly at the contact and moved his thigh between her legs.

His hands were everywhere then, slowly wandering over her body, groping at her breasts and sliding down her stomach as she shivered under his touch.

She couldn't get her hands on him fast enough and she fumbled for a few agonizing seconds with his belt buckle.

"You want me on top?" He asked.

She nodded, laying back against the seat and he crawled over her, kissing her softly.

XXXXX

"Holy fuckin' shit," he murmured. "You alright?"

She smiled softly at that and he lay back on the seat, pulling her on top of him.

"Do you think any walkers heard us?" She asked as she settled against him, her fingers idly tracing the tattoo on his chest.

"I don't care if the whole fuckin' world heard us," He admitted with a chuckle. "Nah, we're fine."

"We should get going soon though," she said.

"Alright. Where to?"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

"We'll stop on the way, get some gas and supplies," He said. "Then we can go wherever you want."

She chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully. "You'll miss things from back there. People."

He nodded. "Yeah, probly. But I'm with the thing I'd be missin' the most," he assured her, pressing a soft kiss on her temple.

"It's not going to be easy," she told him, her brows furrowed.

"Well, no one said it was gonna be." He tapped lightly on her shoulder and sat up. "Come on now. We'd best get goin' to where we gotta go."


	3. Chapter 3

She could feel her eyes drooping slightly in the fresh darkness, only dimly aware of the monotonous drone of the engine as she glided on.

"I could take over drivin' for awhile." He spoke softly, cautiously as if he were measuring his words before pouring them out.

She didn't turn to look at him, but she could feel him studying her carefully.

"We'll still go where ya want," he added. "But I could just-"

"No," She cut him off. "We should stop anyway. Find somewhere to settle in for the night."

"Yeah," He replied with a nod.

She frowned. "We passed a high school about a mile back. That might be good for filling up on supplies."

He shook his head. "No. If it's overrun, it'll be too much tonight. Best hole up in one'a them houses nearby. Easier to clear. We can check the school for supplies in the mornin."

She sat quietly with her lips pursed for so long that he was surprised when she uttered a simple, "You're right."

She pulled off the main highway and turned into the residential area. "We should get farther away from the main road, right?"

He nodded. "Less populated, with any luck."

She turned down a seemingly quiet street. "Looks deserted enough."

There weren't any cars in the driveway, so she pulled right in.

He got out first, holding his already loaded crossbow in front of them.

Her heart was pounding in her ears as she reached out to turn the doorknob, finding it unlocked. He was right behind her, so close she could feel his shaky breath, warm on the back of her neck.

At first there was nothing, then she heard the low gurgling sounds to her right. She drew her knife, her knuckles tingling as she gripped it tightly while her eyes adjusted to the darkness.

There were two of them, standing in the living room in front of an old bulky television, just swaying there as if they'd been waiting for her. Or maybe expecting company in general.

One of them moved forward, arms outstretched in preparation to grab at her throat, but she sank her knife into its skull before it even had a chance. She turned around to find Daryl pulling his arrow out of the other one.

He reached into his bag and produced a flashlight, switched it on and swiped it over every nook and cranny.

She stood still, watching him as he moved in a slow circle around her, eyeing the perimeter of the ground floor. His eyes darted upstairs and she nodded.

The stairs creaked a little under their feet as they slowly ascended. The second floor was small, with what she assumed was two bedrooms separated by a tiny bathroom. She paused with her hand on one of the knobs, listening carefully. She heard nothing, so she pushed the door open, her eyes darting around the room.

"All clear," she said over her shoulder in a loud whisper.

"Yeah," he called from the other room. "Windows're boarded up."

"In here too," she said, backing up into the hall.

She found him peering into the bathroom and she looked over his shoulder. There was no shower curtain, a detail she was grateful for as her mind recalled every single horror movie she'd ever seen when she was younger.

He shrugged. "We're alone."

She nodded.

"I'll take 'em outside," He offered. "They might ward off potential visitors."

"I'll help," she insisted, following him down the stairs.

It didn't take long for them to discard the walker bodies out the front door. It was only minutes later that she was pulling it shut, testing the lock and breathing a sigh of relief when it clicked into place. Almost as an afterthought, she turned the deadbolt too.

"We're alright here for a night," He assured her. "I'll take the first watch."

She nodded, moving into the kitchen.

"What're you doing? We can check on supplies in the morning," He told her.

She wordlessly pulled some soda cans out of the refrigerator.

He raised an eyebrow. "If yer that thirsty, you should be drinkin' water."

She shook her head. "Temporary alarm system," she informed him as she turned to dump the liquid out into the sink. "Now you won't have to keep watch."

He grinned, feeling a surge of pride towards this woman as he watched her methodically poke holes in the bottoms and string them together.

She didn't speak again until she was finished. "There." She handed him a long string of soda cans. "One to hang outside your room, and one for mine."

He moved ahead of her, peeked his head in the room she'd claimed as hers one last time and handed her a flashlight before turning in to his.

She placed the flashlight on the floor after he'd left, her eyes narrowing in the dim light that flooded the room. She took in the unmade bed and her skin crawled at the thought of sleeping in someone else's unwashed space, so she figured she'd look for some clean sheets.

She rummaged around in the trunk near the bed, still unable to shake the uneasy feeling. She was tugging the bottom corners of the sheets under the mattress when she heard heavy footsteps outside her door. They were accompanied by a soft knock a second later.

She opened the door and found herself face to face with Daryl. Her eyebrows raised questioningly.

"I'd sleep better in here," he mumbled, clearly unsure if he was saying the right words.

She thought for a moment, then let out a soft, "Oh," as she placed a hand against his chest. "Then come on in," she added, her arms snaking around his neck as she pulled his body against hers.

He shook his head, closing the door behind him and listening to the loud clatter of the soda cans. "We don't haveta do that. I just…. wanna stay in here, I guess…" He murmured awkwardly.

She nodded. "Fine. But you get the side against the wall."

"I could sleep on the floor."

"That's not necessary," she said, her voice almost a whisper.

He climbed into the bed, obediently sliding across to make room for her.

She lay on her back, staring up at the ceiling long after he'd started snoring.


	4. Chapter 4

She knew she must have fallen asleep at some point because her head felt groggy when she opened her eyes and picked it up off the pillow. Clearly no light would be coming in from the boarded window, so she wasn't sure what time it was, or how long she'd been out.

She could feel his body, warm and inviting next to her. He turned to face her when he felt her stir, mumbling a still sleepy "Mornin'" as a greeting.

She clasped her hands together, stretched her arms out in front of her. "Is it?" she wondered.

She felt more than saw his shrug. "I think so."

"We should see if there's anything we can use in the bathroom before we go," she said.

He waited for her to get up first before he rose up out of bed. She tugged the bedroom door open, her makeshift alarm jingling in protest. Daryl walked across the hall to the other room to get his backpack, which he'd left on the floor before going to Carol the night before.

"Just some expired aspirins," she said, her mouth in a straight line when he rejoined her in front of the medicine cabinet above the sink.

"Take it anyway," he advised, unzipping his pack.

"I was hoping for soap."

He nodded. "Maybe at the school. You still wanna go there?"

"Yes." She bounded down the stairs, unlocking the deadbolt and flinging the door open. She was surprised to see the sun shining brightly and clear skies through the green leaves on the trees as they stepped out onto the porch. It was almost as if she didn't have to step over dead bodies on the lawn.

Daryl paused, sat on the railing and pulled the box of cigarettes out of his pocket. "School's bout a mile south of here, I think. Should be easy once we find our way back to the highway."

Carol looked up at him, shielding her eyes from the sun with her hand. "I've got a map," she informed him, holding up her bag.

She stared at the butt of the cigarette hanging out from the corner of his mouth. "You got any of those left?" She asked.

He nodded, squinting into the sun as he tossed her the pack, then motioned with two fingers for her to come closer so he could light it for her. "Didn't peg you as a smoker."

She didn't answer, just backed up a couple of steps and studied the map. She took a drag from the cigarette, inhaling slowly. She coughed a couple of times, and Daryl felt the corner of his mouth twitch slightly as he watched her.

"We're good," she said after a moment. She folded the map up and placed it back in her bag. "Come on."

"Yes ma'am," he said, jumping down from his perch and stubbing out his cigarette with his foot before scuffling forward to follow her.

XXXXX

"High schools would have been some of the first shelters, so there could be a lot of walkers," Carol said as she pulled up and parked the car on the street.

"Probly," Daryl agreed. "What d'ya think?"

She frowned, touching the knife at her waist and looking down at the handgun that sat on top of her bag. "I think they move slow, and there's two of us. Could be a good opportunity to get things we'll need."

Daryl nodded. "Ready when you are."

They approached the front entrance slowly. A couple of walkers were milling about here and there, but it was nothing they couldn't handle easily and nowhere near the clusters that she'd been half expecting. That made her even more nervous to go inside.

Daryl placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her and kicked open the double doors. They waited for a few seconds, but were met with silence.

She stepped in first, looking from side to side. "It's kind of dark. I think we need a flashlight," she said in a whisper.

He pulled one out of his bag, had to hit it a couple of times before it stayed on. "Fuckin' batteries," he muttered. He pointed it at the floor in front of them. "Stay close," he advised.

She shook her head. "It'll be quicker if we split up. One of us should check the cafeteria to see if there's anything salvageable. Even if it's just bottled water."

He sighed, but didn't say anything.

"I'll get to the nurse's office," she continued. There's probably some useful medical supplies in there, maybe even batteries for the flashlights."

"Alright," he said. "I don't like it though."

She shrugged. "We could just scream if we need help."

"Fine. See ya in a few minutes. Meet back here." He grabbed his backpack and hoisted it over his shoulder.

She watched his retreating form for a moment, then turned down the hall in search of the nurse's office. It didn't take long for her to find it, across the hall from the gym. She passed by two walkers along the way, stabbing them through their skulls with her knife with barely a thought as she moved through the door.

She set her bag on the floor, occasionally dropping some medicines in it when she thought it was necessary. She grinned when she found some batteries in a drawer.

Outside, she heard heavy footsteps in the hall and she breathed a sigh of relief that he was finished so quickly. "Daryl?" She turned and headed for the door to meet him.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a stack of blankets sitting on a shelf next to a cot. She grabbed as many as she thought she could fit in her bag, along with a couple of thin pillows. Satisfied, she pulled her bag up and turned on her heel out into the hall.

She stopped in her tracks when she saw the young walker standing a few feet away from her. He was clearly a student here, or at least he had been. His converse sneakers made heavy slapping noises as he dragged his feet along.

She mentally scolded herself for assuming it was Daryl. Of course it wouldn't be, as this wasn't where they'd agreed to meet. She'd have to be more careful next time.

The teenaged walker grabbed at her bag, pulling her forward until she buried the blade of her knife in between his eyes. Then he slumped to the floor with a loud echo down the hallway, and that's when she saw them.

They came out of the gym slowly, and she mentally counted them as they emerged. There were seven of them when she was done counting, all young, maybe even younger than the dead boy she'd just killed. She could tell by their torn school jackets and trendy, bloodied jeans.

The stepped away from the gym and shuffled down the hall, all huddled together as if they had just been dismissed from class. One of them broke away from the group, moving faster towards her than all the rest.

This one was a girl, her soft light brown curls were matted to her head. She bared her teeth as she moved forward, snarling with arms outstretched.

Carol's eyes locked with the dead girl's sunken ones and everything moved in slow motion. The walker studied her for a moment, seemingly sizing her up, and Carol could tell that this girl had been one of the smart ones. Probably had an A+ average in school, just like-

Six shots fired in rapid succession from a gun. The girl didn't let up her movements though, just kept moving forward. She reached out to Carol and Carol was frozen in place for a moment as her heart rate responded to the gunfire.

"Carol, run!" He shouted, but she stood in place, with one hand on her knife.

The spell was only broken when he threw his body forward, pushing her down to the ground and ripping her knife from her side. Her arm hit the floor hard, jarring her out of her reverie in time to see him throw her knife swiftly into the walker's head.

Tears started flooding from her eyes when she saw the girl's body start to fall and she angrily pushed against him. "Get off me!" She shouted. "Just get off!"

His whole body was tense as he pulled her up with him as she struggled. "Stop," he pleaded quietly. "Why didn't you run away?"

"I am done running!" She screamed through clenched teeth before taking off down the hall and bolting through the exit.

She was kneeling on the lawn with both arms wrapped around herself when he returned a moment later with both of their bags. "Carol…" He started, but she shrugged away.

He followed her to the car, placing both bags in the back seat before reaching for her and pulling her close to his body. "I found soap."

She struggled against him, tried to pull her wrists out of his hands.

"Hay. Hay, it's okay," he said softly. "I've got you. You're okay."

"No, I'm not!" She shouted, finally managing to break free. She moved around to driver's side of the car. "We're done here. Either get in or get out."

He leapt around the other side, his tall frame crowding her against the car. "That's it then? You gonna keep pushin' me away?"

She glared up at him. "I could have gotten that."

He shook his head. "I know that. I know. But this ain't your solo show. We help each other out. That's how this works."

She didn't answer, just turned her gaze away from him.

"Look here, sweetheart. I'm not the one that abandoned ya, alright?" He tapped her chin up to look at him. "He did. Not me."

Her eyes were wide and tearful when they met his. "Why didn't you?"

He sighed. "We goin' through this again? Just stop punishin' yerself. Makes things a lot easier."

"I can't do this… I can't…" she cried. "I don't want it to be easier."

He took a step back, waited.

"It's there. It's always there, every second of every day," she whispered, covering her face with her hands.

"I know," he said quietly, reaching out to pull her hands away. "Come on now. Let's get out of here."

"Doesn't stop…."

He put an arm around her shoulders, steered her around the other side of the car. "Would ya let me drive for a bit?"

She nodded wordlessly, staring through glassy eyes as he helped her settle into the passenger's seat.


	5. Chapter 5

Daryl knew he'd have to make a decision soon. Carol had nodded off and the sun was setting. He didn't want the beams from the headlights to attract any unwanted attention, which meant that they'd have to settle somewhere for the night again.

She was still asleep by the time he was pulling into the driveway, so he gently shook her awake. If she was surprised to see that house again, she didn't show it, so he figured it was okay. "Welcome home," he muttered.

"I think I locked it up before we left," she said with a yawn. "Sorry. Knee-jerk reaction I guess."

He shrugged. "S' fine. Won't take nothin' ta pick that lock."

Carol dug around in her bag for her flashlight and held it over his shoulder while he worked. The door was popped open in mere seconds and he shooed her in.

"I'll be really impressed if we can still lock it from the inside after that," she told him.

He grinned as he clicked it into place before turning the deadbolt.

She managed a small smile at that before heading up the stairs.

He followed closely behind her, absently fidgeting with the chipped paint on the railing. "Uh.. guess I should sleep in my own room tonight?"

She looked at him over her shoulder as she tugged the soda cans into place. "You don't have to."

He nodded, walking in behind her and watching as she tested her alarm system a few times before pulling the door shut.

She placed the flashlight on the nightstand and motioned for him to sit.

He obediently sat next to her on the bed with his back against the wall, watched in the dim light as she pulled her legs up on the mattress.

"We can do it again if you want," she told him in a low voice.

He was quiet for a moment before answering. "What do you want?"

Her blue eyes were clear as she looked at him seriously. "I want you to tell me that what I did was bad."

He nodded once, regarding her carefully. "Yeah, it was a bad thing that you did alright."

She lowered her eyes, hugging her knees to her chest.

"But shit, woman. Who the hell am I ta judge?" He placed a hand awkwardly under her chin and tilted her head back to look at him.

Their eyes locked and they sat quietly like that for a long time until he slowly leaned over and kissed her. It was nothing fancy, just a light press of his lips against hers. Almost like it didn't even happen at all.

She knew that she'd have to be the one to make a move if she wanted anything to ever happen again, and that was fine with her. Years and years of not moving at all and now she felt a sense of relief wash over her to be the one crawling into his lap.

He just held her like that for a moment, so she let him digest the situation. He swallowed hard, and she could feel it. She reached a hand up to run through his hair, and he turned his head to place a soft kiss on the inside of her wrist. Then his hands got restless.

Carol Peletier had only been with one man in her entire life before the back seat of that car. She was used to quick, drunk, angry, hard, and stolen. He may have thought he possessed her, and she supposed legally he did, but she was never really his. Every time he'd taken her he stole a part of her.

This was different. She found she thoroughly enjoyed Daryl's frantic need to get his hands all over every part of her body. And this man, who had a whole hell of a lot of experience in thievery, would never have to steal anything from her because she'd gladly give it all to him.

He was breathing hard as they kissed, they both were. She let him lower her to the mattress, with one hand rubbing between her legs and the other reaching over her to switch off the flashlight.

It was pitch black in the closed room, but she didn't mind. She knew that the darkness made it easier for him to feel her hands and lips all over the scars on his back. She supposed that the darkness made it easier for her too, when he desperately asked for her to get on top, even though it didn't take much for her to crawl over his body and spread her legs for him.

Afterwards, he pulled her naked body close to him from behind and placed wet, sloppy kisses along her neck. Told her how fuckin' beautiful she was and how fuckin' good she made him feel. It was certainly easier to hear those sorts of things in the dark, where she rubbed her fingers over a long scar on his side until he placed his hand over hers to make her stop.


End file.
